The 2009 comedy 3 Idiots is a blockbuster Bollywood film directed by Rajkumar Hirani, and based on the best-seller Five Point Someone by Chetan Bhagat.
Farhan (Madhavan), Raju (Sharman Joshi) and Rancho (Aamir Khan) are friends at a top university. The dean labels them the 'three idiots' because of their free-spirited attitude.
A decade ago, Rancho and another student Chatur (Omi Vaidya), who believes in mindless rote learning, made a bet to see which of them would be more successful in 10 years. Now, the pair, who have gone their separate ways, need to learn the true meaning of success.
The movie wraps a heavy message in light comedy. It is satire at its best, a powerful indictment of India's education system in which students cram for exams while stifling their dreams. In this race, initiative suffers.
Flashbacks offer a good contrast between the characters' present lives and their naivety a decade ago. Such contrasts lie at the comic heart of the movie while providing poignant moments.
The movie makes an important point: we must not let social pressures ruin our lives.
